My primary area of interest is writing for animation. I have written several cartoon shorts, a few animated TV spec scripts, and a pilot for an animated comedy series. I'm available for writing assignments on any animated film or television production. I'm also seeking job opportunities as a writer's assistant or script PA in order to gain further experience and to learn more about the craft of writing for television.

My secondary area of interest is editing animatics & story reels. I am always on the lookout for opportunities to create animatics on any animation project. Story reels that I have created can be seen on my YouTube channel.

I am also interested in any entry-level positions in production management for television animation.

About Me

I am a cartoonist and animation writer. I graduated from Columbia College Chicago where I studied animation production and directed the award-winning animated short film Play Date. I am also the artist & writer of the online comic strip Grimstone, which I have been creating since 2000. I am a movie & comic book geek, tabletop gamer, computer nerd, Star Wars & Doctor Who fanatic, and proud Ravenclaw.

I am currently exploring employment opportunities in the animation industry while also pitching my newest project, an animated comedy series called The Quarter Bin.

Portfolio

Animatics

Projects

The Quarter Bin

The Quarter Bin centers around down on her luck Illustrator Zoe Rhodes and her best friend, struggling writer Max Schuster, as they work together to develop a new comic series while dealing with the shenanigans that occur at the oddball comic shop of their employ, Excelsior Card & Comics.

The Quarter Bin is a celebration of nerd culture and all things geeky. It is an opportunity to take a truly deep look at that culture and reveal the diversity that can be found within. Nerds come in a variety of forms and from many walks of life, and we intend to show that.

Half-hour animated comedy series for mature audiences (18-35)

Download One Sheet

Grimstone

The town of Grimstone is home to many monsters, ghosts, and creatures of the night. One such monster is Ribcage, a skeleton who makes his “living” appearing in horror movies. His career has taken a turn for the worse and it has become increasingly harder for him to get work. Nevertheless, Ribcage is determined to do whatever it takes to become a star again, even if it kills him – again! Come and take a look at life through the eyes of a dead man.

Grimstone is the online comic strip that I’ve been sporadically writing and illustrating since the year 2000. I’ve also self-published a few issues of a Grimstone comic book series and a book collection of the strip’s early years.

Play Date

Play Date is the animated short film I directed for my college capstone course Animation Production Studio in 2010-2011. The film tells the story of a little boy named Jack and a little girl named Jill. Jack just wants to be left alone and play as a cowboy riding his horse across the desert. Jill pretends she’s a beautiful princess and wants Jack to be her knight in shining armor. Jill pursues the reluctant Jack through several imaginary worlds of make-believe in her effort to win his affections. In the end, the two might just learn to play together after all.

Play Date was the recipient of the Chicago Film Critics Association’s inaugural Emerging Filmmakers Award in 2013 and later won Best Student Short at the 2014 Wizard World Film Festival in Chicago.

Fan Works

Poker Night

Several years ago, before there was Robot Chicken, there was Rabid Mongoose. Inspired by the comic strip Twisted Mego Theatre in ToyFare magazine, my friends and I created a series of stop motion animated short films using our highly articulated action figures. The pinacle of these shorts is Poker Night.

Batman is the world's greatest detective and has defeated scores of dastardly villains in his long career. But tonight, he will face his greatest challenge ever. The Dark Knight squares off against five of the world's greatest superheroes in a high stakes, winner-takes-all game of poker! It will take all his crimefighting skills to defeat the combined might of Superman, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Aquaman and the Hulk. When the chips are down and everything's on the line, who will be the victor?

Poker Night was a runner-up in one of Wizard Magazine's Direct to Video contests and footage was screened at the 2002 Wizard World Chicago comic convention in Rosemont, IL

Harry Potter and the Perfect Night

Back when I was still a student at Columbia College Chicago, I wrote a short Harry Potter story as my final project for my Fantasy Literature class. The story is about 5500 words and is set five years after the Battle of Hogwarts and the downfall of Voldemort. It tells the tale of a very special Valentine’s Day between Harry Potter and the love of his life, Ginny Weasley.

Ultimate Munchkin Companion

My friends and I are huge fans of the card game Munchkin. If you've ever played it, you know how complicated it can get, especially when it comes to keeping track of all your stats. I tried a few level counter apps and found them all insufficient. So I made my own web app instead. It is optimized for the iPhone 6/6s but should be compatible with just about any smartphone.

Batgirl and Killer Moth both have something to prove. Batgirl needs to prove to Batman that, despite her youth, she can be a great crime fighter and an asset to him. Killer Moth needs to prove to Gotham’s underworld that, despite his ridiculous appearance, he is a formidable super villain and capable of getting rid of Batman once and for all. And when their goals collide, wackiness ensues.

TV Pilots

In less than 24 hours, Zoe loses her girlfriend, her job, her home, and is forced to move in with her best friend Max. Max has his own problem to deal with when his comic pitch gets rejected and his artist casts him aside. They’ll soon discover their respective problems have the same solution.

Stan Arcanaczyk seeks out the great wizard Balthazar in the hopes that he will become his apprentice and learn the art of magic. Balthazar is skeptical of this eager young man and sets Stan upon a task to prove his worth. Stan must face the legendary dragon Smok Wawelski and end his reign of terror. Instead, Stan discovers a misunderstood monster and turns him into a friend and ally, earning Balthazar’s approval in the process.

As part of his wizard training, Stan receives a magic wand from Balthazar to help him better control his burgeoning powers. The wand is very powerful and Stan is overwhelmed by the spells it allows him to perform. Stan’s magical hijinks quickly spiral out of control, and Balthazar must put right the chaos his pupil has unleashed. In the end, Stan might just learn a valuable lesson about restraint and responsibility.

About Me

I am a cartoonist and animation writer. I graduated from Columbia College Chicago where I studied screenwriting, storyboarding, and both traditional & computer animation production. I am a movie & comic book geek, tabletop gamer, computer nerd, Star Wars & Doctor Who fanatic, and proud Ravenclaw.

I began creating my own cartoons when I was nine years old and have been publishing comics online for over 20 years. Beginning in the autumn of 2000, I have worked as the artist & writer of the online comic strip Grimstone, which is based on characters I created during childhood. Since then, I have self-published a Grimstonecomic book series and a book collection of the strip’s early years.

From 2004 until 2012, I was a part-time student at Columbia College Chicago with a concentration in computer animation for film & video. While there, I worked on several short scripts, storyboards, story reels, animated vignettes, and short films. During the 2010-11 school term – as part of the Animation Production Studio course – I directed a 7-minute animated film entitled Play Date, about a little girl pursuing a little boy through imaginary worlds in a game of make-believe. Play Date was the recipient of the Chicago Film Critics Association's inaugural Emerging Filmmakers Award in 2013 and later won Best Student Short at the 2014 Wizard World Film Festival in Chicago.

I continue to create Grimstone comics while exploring employment opportunities in the animation industry. I am also currently pitching my newest project, an animated comedy series called The Quarter Bin.

Poker Night

Production Notes

Poker Night is the third entry in the Rabid Mongoose toymation series, and the second attempt at winning the Wizard Direct-to-Video contest.

Superman and the Hulk are the only two characters that appear in all three Toymation films, and the only characters voiced by the same actor (Mike Wytrykus).

Original notes had the story continue well beyond the outcome of the poker game. Batman made several other attempts to regain his fortune including working as Iron Man's butler and robbing Superman's apartment.

Most of the plot points and jokes were conceived over coffee one night at the Muse Cafe in Lansing, IL.

Produced for a budget of about one hundred dollars, split three ways among the producers.

Used many of the same figures, props and production equipment as How Superman Got His Groove Back.

Pre-production was more elaborate than the other toymation films, and involved a lot more writing, storyboard drawing, set design and construction, as well as several trips to Menards, Hobby Lobby, and K*B ToyWorks.

Dialogue was once again completed before filming and involved many long hours of recording multiple takes. With a larger cast, several recording sessions were required to get all the necessary dialogue done properly.

Dave Velez was originally cast as Batman, but was replaced by Steve Wigsmoen after filming was completed. Velez can still be heard as the voice of Robin.

Principle photography took several weeks to complete and required many long days of filming as the crew was only able to meet once or twice a week.

Poker Night was filmmed at a letterboxed 16:9 ratio on a high quality miniDV digital camcorder. Approximately two and half hours of footage was shot.

Post-production lasted several weeks but was not begun immediately after filmming. Final editing and rendering of the Hulk Smash Everybody VideoCD had to be completed before editing on Poker Night could begin.

Video was captured digitally using Pinnacle Studios DV500 Plus.

Editing was done on the same Dell Dimension XPS T500 used for Hulk and Superman but with Adobe Premiere 6.0 instead of Vegas Video.

Total production of Poker Night took several months to complete. Final rendering of the project occured in May of 2002.

Surprisingly did not receive even runner-up status in the Direct-to-Video contest. Lost to a film called Becoming Superman, which had little, if anything, to do with its title character.

Two clips were featured in the "best of the rest" reel (edited by two-time winner Zeb Wells) at the Wizard World Chicago 2002 Fan Awards. The first was a shot of Spider-Man swinging away, the second was the final scene with Iron Man.

The version submitted to the Wizard contest was five and a half minutes and did not contain the end credits. An eight and a half minute version with a longer credit sequence timed to Kenny Roger's "The Gambler" was included (in DVD quality) on a CD-ROM that was available for free from the Rabid Mongoose table in Artists' Alley at Wizard World Chicago 2002. The six and a half minute version found on this webite has a shorter credit sequence with no music. The longer version can still be found on YouTube and other viral video sites.